Some people assume they can say whatever they want about strangers, especially when they think no one around them can understand what they’re saying.

So, what would you do if two people started gossiping about you in a foreign language, unaware that you spoke it fluently? Would you ignore them? Or would you wait for the perfect moment to let them know they’d been caught?

In the following story, one woman finds herself in this exact situation. Here’s what happened.

Bus gossip

So this happened when I was around 16. At the time, I dressed very goth/punk and had a few different shades of pink hair that were very backcombed and gothy clothes.

I was on the bus into town in southern Sweden when two middle-aged women got onto the bus. They sat down behind me, and I thought that was the end of it.

All of a sudden, they started gossiping in Dutch. However what they didn’t know is that I’m half Dutch and grew up with the language.

I sat there listening for a bit while they talked mad trash about pretty much everyone on the bus.

She seriously turned the tables on them.

And then they said to each other ‘the girl in front of us is the worst though, how can she even go outside looking like that? I’d be ashamed!’ And a few other things that I can’t remember anymore.

My bus stop was the next one, so I waited until I was about to leave.

I grabbed my things, looked at them, gave them my sweetest smile, and said in Dutch, “It’s rude to talk trash about other people, and you never know who knows your language. And I quite like my hair, thank you very much.”

It was glorious to watch them as the colour of their faces drained.

That wasn’t the end of it.

I saw them again a few weeks later, gave them a sweet smile, and said again in Dutch, “Hello ladies, I hope you have a wonderful day today!”

And they again looked mortified and ashamed and ushered each other away.

Bravo! What a mature way to handle it.

Let’s check out what the folks over at Reddit have to say about this story.

Here’s a similar story.

This person has a sense of humor.

She called them out.

Yet another similar story.

She turned it around so well!

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